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Smoke from Capitol Hill store fire seen for miles

Smoke from a nearby hardware store fire rises behind Nationals Park before a baseball game between the Washington Nationals the New York Mets, Wednesday, June 5, 2013, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Upwards of 200 firefighters helped contain a 4-alarm fire in a Capitol Hill hardware store that had spread to three other buildings and sent up plumes of smoke that could be seen for miles.

WRC-TV in Washington reported that the fire broke out at Frager's Hardware about 6 p.m. Wednesday. Crews arrived to find flames bursting through the roof.

The fire on Pennsylvania Avenue, about 11 blocks south of the U.S. Capitol, sent dark smoke drifting over the Capitol dome and Nationals Park, where the Nationals were hosting the Mets.

Two firefighters suffered minor injuries.

John Weintraub, one of the owners of Frager's, tells WJLA-TV that the fire started in a lumber area on the side of the store.

D.C. Councilmember Tommy Wells called the hardware store, established more than 90 years ago, "a DC landmark and an absolute gem to the Capitol Hill community."

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